Getting Back On The Fitness Train

My fitness train derailed and I desperately need to get it back on track. Aside from the runs that I've registered for, I haven't done any running at all. Or much else in the way of being active. I've really caught up on some reading, but that doesn't keep me in shape so I guess it's nothing to brag about.

Brady and I have the Run or Dye this weekend, and it's the last run I've registered for this year. There are a few I'm thinking about doing yet (the Fall Frolic in October, for example) but I think there's a chance I may be done with 5K's for 2013.

Don't panic! Just because I'm done with registering for 5K's this year does NOT mean I am done with running or staying active. We have our awesome treadmill in the house and the fall TV season is starting so I will be logging a lot of miles on that bad boy while watching my shows. I may not always run those miles, but even a brisk walking pace will make me sweat when I keep it up for an hour-long show. I want to start utilizing my Fitbit again and work harder on hitting those 10,000 steps/day. I want to work on my cardiovascular fitness so I can get my dang breathing under control when I run - because I'm going to OWN some 5K's next year.

I also found my next GPS watch and I need to work hard on my fitness before I can allow myself to buy it... but check out this video:
                     


The Forerunner 620 is too much watch for me... but that 220? It WILL be mine. I'm so excited about it I can hardly contain it. It has everything I want in a watch, and more that I hadn't thought of. This is the techie-nerd side of me coming out but I can't help it. Who knows? Janae, also known as The Hungry Runner Girl recently mentioned that she'll be doing a review and giveaway soon so maybe I'll be lucky enough to win one! ;) Either way, that watch is totally in my future.

I'm confident that I can get back into fitness because I have an excellent challenge coming up next month to help me stay on track. Jess from the awesome blog Run With Jess came up with a Virtual Ride to fight breast cancer! As readers probably know, my mom is a 2X breast cancer survivor so when Jess posted about this back in August I immediately knew I was going to do it. I ordered a medal and just received it in the mail - and it would be pretty awful to have this beautiful medal without EARNING it, so I have many things holding me accountable here which is exactly what I need to keep me on course. The challenge is to bike 50K in the month of October. That's 31 miles. You can do a mile a day, or you can do all 31 in a single day, or any other variation that suits you - as long as you finish it in the month of October. Here's a link to learn more about it - doesn't it sound fun? When you finish you can be entered into a drawing for prizes - bonus! I'm excited to do this to honor my mom. If any of you readers are interested in doing this with me, please leave a comment - I would love to hear from you!

What I keep telling myself lately is that it is okay to get off track... as long as you don't let it derail you completely. I'm not going to let myself get depressed about the fact that I haven't been running. If I haven't felt like running lately, maybe it just means I need to do a different activity for a while. Bike rides or long walks with Brady are things I can do that will keep me active and healthy. I will get back in the running groove when I'm ready - I know this because even though running is never "easy" for me, I love how it makes me feel. In the mean time I will just focus on activities I feel excited about, like this upcoming virtual ride and taking walks with Brady so we can check out the leaves changing colors. What do you guys do to get motivated after a slump?

Bike Ride and a 5K Addiction???

Brady got a new bike this week - his friend Aiden has a mountain bike and Brady decided he wanted one too. He even saved his birthday money and paid for half of it! So he is the proud owner of this sweet ride:

He was really excited to go for a decent bike ride instead of just riding around the yard and driveway... so today I talked Pete into going with us. Brady and I got a head start and it didn't take long to find out why - Pete grabbed Jordy (our dog) so he could come with us too! We have a little creek about a mile and a half away from our house so he could stop for a drink, but by the end of our ride he was pretty worn out. I wanted to keep a good pace so I ended up leaving the boys in the dust on the way back... oops. We did just over 5 miles in all, not a very long ride but it had some hills! Pete said he felt the burn in his legs which made me happy.

I was afraid the bike would be a bit big for Brady yet but he is loving it and cruising around like a crazy boy. I got a gel cover for my seat so my flabby rear was a lot more comfortable on this ride than it was on our last! I definitely see more biking in our future. I love our dog but next time I think we'll leave him home so we can take a longer ride.

I've registered for another 5K. The 2nd Annual Jim Hodge Memorial Run.... they are having a 5K and a 10K. When Catherine first mentioned it I had declined because Pete's family reunion is that day. But I decided if I do the 5K and come home right after we will have plenty of time to get to the reunion. Why did I sign up? Because Catherine will be doing it with me and she is a great motivator. Brady will be with me on a few of the runs I've registered for this year and he gets tuckered out easily so I won't be able to go as fast as I'd like to (like I'm so fast, haha). I'm trying to get the boy to train a bit with me but the few times we've gone out he's gotten bored right away so I don't know how that will work out. I wanted another run where I could try to push myself to do better, so that's where the Jim Hodge Run comes in. It's a small local race so it won't have the excitement of the Packers 5K or the Cellcom, but I know it will still be a fun time. Let's just hope I'm not last!